Review: Finest Doesn’t Disappoint, But About Those Refractors…

Whenever I’m due to write about a new release, I try to visit one of my local card shops to get a retail point of view about the viability of the issue. They usually have some trenchant comments about every issue. Sometimes an owner can go on a bit of a rant but most of the time, the opinions are based on the experiences his collectors are relaying to him.

The owner of Triple Cards here in Texas had a lot of positive things to say about 2015 Topps Finest NFL including how much the collectors liked the boxes, how a decent percentage of them had an extra autograph and even about how some of the boxes had nothing but refractors.

Now, whenever I open a Finest box (or frankly any box with refractor type cards), my primary hope is that I can easily identity them. It’s not always easy to differentiate them from standard cards unless there’s a notation on the back. And yes, I had problems in 1993 when the first Finest baseball set was issued.

Sadly, the 2015 finest issue is no exception. Other than the numbered refractors, I struggled. I can only imagine what it’s like for a newbie or someone getting back into the hobby after a long absence. It makes it harder for collectors who open just a few packs to know the difference without the refractor notation on the back. Failing that issue, there is little doubt Finest, for many reasons, is still a very popular brand.

Finest is again packaged with two mini boxes (or packs) in each master box. Each mini box contains six packs with five cards per pack and each mini box is to contain either an autograph patch care or an autograph jumbo relic card.

Triple Cards reported good sales at slightly over $105 per master box while leading online hobby retailers are currently at $90-95 per master box before shipping.

Well, once I figured out the design difference in the refractors, I did feel a bit better about the break. But Topps, I’m begging you: print the word “Refractor” on any of those non- numbered parallels going forward.

Other than that issue, I think we received fair value for the retail price of the box. Beyond the ‘value’, the colors are bold and the overall design is much like what we’ve come to know. If you’re already a Finest fan, you’ll like it.

You can check out more 2015 Topps Finest cards and see boxes and cases for sale on eBay here.